Carl Sandburg College President Dr. Seamus Reilly will retire from his position when his contract expires at the end of June 2027.
“It truly has been an honor to lead Carl Sandburg College over the past nine years,” Reilly said in a release announcing his retirement. “I am proud of the work that has been accomplished through the hard work of staff and faculty, and I look forward to seeing Sandburg continue to grow and shape our region.”
Joshua Gibb, chair of Sandburg’s board of trustees, said Reilly will leave the college stronger and well-positioned for the future. The board, in partnership with a search firm, soon will begin a national search for the college’s eighth president.
Reilly became Sandburg’s seventh president in 2018.
Under his leadership, Sandburg opened a new Science & Technology Center in 2024 and a renovated Student Center in 2025. The college also recently broke ground on the new Charger Center, a 70,204-square-foot athletic and conference facility.
In addition, the college secured a $1.8 million state grant in 2025 to create the 518 Collective agricultural technology incubator in downtown Galesburg.
Prior to Sandburg, Reilly was a vice president at Parkland College in Champaign. He has a doctorate in English from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
